Method and apparatus for group calling in an IP-based communication system

ABSTRACT

Method and system for group calling in an IP-based communication system includes receiving an administrator identifier, receiving one or more invitee identifiers, initiating a first connection from a central location and initiating at least one or more second connections from the central location to join an administrator and at least one invitee. The administrator identifier and one or more invitee identifiers can be a telephone number or other identifiers associated with the communication system. To establish the group call, the administrator identifier and one or more invitee identifiers are received from the administrator. The first connection initiation is to the administrator and the second or more connection initiations are to the at least one invitee. System for making a group call includes a user interface adapted for use by the administrator, a database manager, a database, a load balancer and a group calling pool adapted for SIP-based group call setup.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention is related to the field of telecommunication devices andservices and more specifically, the invention is directed to anapparatus (system) and method that provides customers of atelecommunication system based on Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP)with the ability to perform a group calling function.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

VoIP is a technological development in the field of telecommunicationsthat is utilized to transmit voice conversations over a data networkusing Internet Protocol (IP) rather than the existing and traditionaltelecommunications system more commonly referred to as the PublicSwitched Telephone Network (PSTN) or Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS).Entities (e.g., businesses or individuals) implement VoIP by purchasingand installing the necessary equipment (e.g., one or more CustomerPremise Equipment (CPE) devices) to access a VoIP service provider andactivating this telecommunication service via a broadband connection.

Since VoIP is a relatively new technology in terms of its commercialpenetration, there are many PSTN-originated telecommunication featuresthat new VoIP subscribers may desire or expect so as to mimic theexisting technology. One such feature is group or conference callingwhere it is possible to connect multiple parties calling from multiplephone lines into a single communication session. It is possible for VoIPto duplicate the “feel” of a conference call (where callers each dial into a conference bridge (in the form of a server or similar type ofcomputer processing device) and are subsequently connected to each otherto form the communication session). However, this places a burden oneach caller to obtain a communication session or main access number tothe conference bridge device and perform dial-in and login/securityactions to become part of the desired communication session. There isalso a further burden on the conference call administrator (theindividual who is planning or otherwise hosting the conference call) toinitially purchase, install or otherwise provide for the necessaryinfrastructure to carry our the conference call and subsequentlydisseminate the above-identified dial-in and login information prior tothe scheduled time of the conference call. These administrative hurdlesdetract from the overall experience of group communications. With theadvent of web-based applications, it has become easier for data to beshared among an increasing number of users. However, there is a lack ofintegration of PSTN-style conference or group calling and web-basedapplications to facilitate this type of communication via the Internet.

Accordingly, there is a need in the art for an apparatus and method forproviding VoIP subscribers with the ability to perform conferencecalling via a web-based interface to improve the overall experience.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The disadvantages associated with the prior art are overcome by a methodand system for group calling in an IP-based communication system. Themethod includes the steps of receiving a group call administratoridentifier, receiving one or more group call invitee identifiers,initiating a first group call connection from a central location andinitiating at least one or more second group call connections from thecentral location to join a group call administrator and at the least onegroup call invitee. The group call administrator identifier and one ormore group call invitee identifiers can be a telephone number or otheridentifiers associated with users of the communication system. Toestablish the group call, the group call administrator identifier andone or more group call invitee identifiers are received from the groupcall administrator. The first group call connection initiation is to thegroup administrator and the second or more group call connectioninitiations are to the at least one group call invitee. The centrallocation for the first group call connection initiation and the secondor more group call connection initiations is the VoIP service providerequipment. The step of receiving a group call administrator identifieroccurs via a first internet connection between a group calladministrator and a VoIP service provider. The step of receiving one ormore group call invitee identifiers also occurs via a first internetconnection between a group call administrator and a VoIP serviceprovider. In one embodiment of the invention, the method is practiced bya computer readable medium storing a software program that, whenexecuted by a computer and being initiated in response to acommunication request placed via an interface of a VoIP servicesubscriber, causes the computer to perform an operation of VoIP-basedgroup calling as described above.

A system for making a VoIP-based group call includes a user interfaceadapted for use by a group call administrator via the Internet, adatabase manager connected to the user interface, a database connectedto the database manager, a group call load balancer connected to theuser interface and a group calling pool adapted for SIP-based group callsetup. The user interface further comprises a first field for receivinga group call administrator identifier and at least one second field forreceiving one or more group call invitee identifiers. In one embodimentof the invention, the group call administrator identifier and one ormore group call invitee identifiers is a telephone number. The groupcalling pool includes a plurality of servers wherein each serverresponds to one group call request made by the group call administrator.Each server responds to a group call request by initiating a first groupcall connection and initiating at least one or more second group callconnections to join a group call administrator and at least one groupcall invitee.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

So that the manner in which the above recited features of the presentinvention are attained and can be understood in detail, a moreparticular description of the invention, briefly summarized above, maybe had by reference to the embodiments thereof which are illustrated inthe appended drawings.

It is to be noted, however, that the appended drawings illustrate onlytypical embodiments of this invention and are therefore not to beconsidered limiting of its scope, for the invention may admit to otherequally effective embodiments.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram depicting an exemplary embodiment of aVoIP-based, group calling enabled communication system in accordancewith the subject invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a group calling system within theVoIP-based communication system in accordance with the subjectinvention;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart depicting a method of group call processing inaccordance with the subject invention; and

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a controller that may be used topractice one or more embodiments of the subject invention.

To facilitate understanding, identical reference numerals have beenused, where possible, to designate identical elements that are common tothe figures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

To achieve the desired objectives, the subject invention providesIP-based telecommunication services (i.e., VoIP) subscribers with theability to initiate advanced call features associated with the servicesuch as, but not limited to, group or conference calling. Real-timemanagement and control of the features are executed by a system in anIP-based environment (i.e., the Internet) via one or more interfaces.Since both the telecommunication service and the management systemoperate over IP, the limitations associated with a PSTNtelecommunication service are overcome and full exploitation ofbroadband capabilities are enjoyed to improve the overall experience.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the management functionsoperate as part of a larger VoIP telecommunication service. Suchtelecommunication service is, by way of example, part of any public orprivate data network (or combination thereof) constructed for (in part)and adapted to convert analog voice signals (e.g., generated by a humanutterance) to a digitized and packetized format according to known andunderstood protocols (such as but not limited to Transmission ControlProtocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)) for transmission from anoriginating point (Party A) to one or more terminating points (Party Band/or C, D and the like). In a preferred embodiment of the invention,the data network is an IP-based network such as (but not limited to) theInternet having VoIP specific and related components connected thereto.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram depicting an exemplary embodiment of acommunication system 100 in accordance with one or more aspects of theinvention. The communication system 100 includes avoice-over-internet-protocol (VOIP) network 104 and (optionally) apublic switched telephone network (PSTN) 106. The VOIP network 104includes a VoIP Service Provider Network 102 and a plurality ofVoIP-service related servers 110 coupled to an internet protocol (IP)network 108. The servers 110 may be various well known serversconfigured to facilitate VOIP services, such as provisioning servers,proxy servers, media relay servers, and the like including but notlimited to additional servers described below regarding specifics of thesubject invention. The VOIP Service Provider Network 102 is configuredto provide the necessary infrastructure and call processing capabilitiesto set up, execute and tear down VoIP communication sessions. The VoIPService Provider Network 102 and servers 110 may be implemented using aplurality of computer systems and like type general and/or specificpurpose devices and systems. The one or more of the servers 110 may becoupled to a PSTN gateway 130, which in turn is coupled to the PSTN 106.The PSTN 106 provides conventional telephone service to a plurality oftelephones 132.

Various customer premises equipment (CPE) 112 n are coupled to the IPnetwork 108 via links 128 n. Various communication devices 114 n can becoupled to the CPE 112 n. The CPE 112 n may include modems, terminaladapters, routers, and the like configured to provide an interfacebetween the communication devices 114 n and the IP network 108. Thecommunication devices 114 n can comprise telephones, video phones,computers, mobile devices, and the like. The CPE 112 n and thecommunication devices 114 n can be distributed among a plurality ofsubscribers to VOIP services provided by the VOIP network 104. The links128 n can include cable, fiber optic, digital subscriber line (DSL), orlike type communication links known in the art.

In general operation, subscribers use the communication devices 114 nand the CPE 112 n to covert content (e.g., voice, video, data, some orall of which may be analog) and signaling into VOIP-based content andsignaling (“a VOIP call”). VOIP calls can be transmitted to the IPnetwork 108 via the CPE 112 n over the links 128 n. Those skilled in theart will appreciate that the VOIP calls may pass through other IPnetworks before reaching the IP network 108 of the VOIP network 104. Forexample, the VOIP calls may pass through various IP networks of theInternet before being routed to the IP network 108 (e.g., internetservice provider (ISP) networks, backbone networks, etc.). VOIP callsmay be processed by the servers 110. VOIP calls in general and those ofa conference call or group call nature as described in further detailbelow can be directed to other subscribers of the VOIP network 104, tosubscribers of other VOIP networks (not shown), or to subscribers oftraditional telephone services (e.g., the PSTN 106).

Generally, when a subscriber activates their service (i.e., a VoIPservice), they have access to a number of features, such as but notlimited to call features like call waiting, call forwarding, do notdisturb, caller ID, and the like. Additionally, the subscriber can haveaccess to other IP-based services, such as instant messaging, email, andthe like. Tying services and features together adds to the flexibilityand pervasiveness of the services in general so that their adoptionbecomes increasingly widespread. In some embodiments, the VoIP network104 provides a method and apparatus for managing and establishing groupcalls so that subscribers can create and schedule such calls with aminimum of interaction and preparation by all involved parties of thegroup as well as minimizing the cost associated with the requiredinfrastructure to perform such group calls. The group calling featurecan be facilitated by the VoIP Service Provider Network 102. Forclarity, only a single element is shown for the VoIP Service ProviderNetwork 102. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the VoIPService Provider Network 102 can include more than one elementinterconnected to various other elements/components to achieve thedesired result.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a group calling system (GCS) 200 withinthe VoIP Service Provider Network 102 in accordance with the subjectinvention. Generally, the GCS 200 is a plurality of servers 202, 204,206 having specific functionality and roles in the group callingprocess, a database 208 for retaining information relevant to the groupcalling process and a pool of group call processors (GCP) 210 forfulfilling group call requests. Note that while the GCS 200 depictsconnection to a packet-based network such as the Internet 108, suchnetwork is exemplary in nature and not part of the specific invention.Connection to other packet-based networks are possible and within thescope of the invention.

A first server 204 of the plurality of servers functions as a userinterface (UI). That is, the first server/UI 204 provides the graphical,audio, video and other related capabilities to create an interfacebetween VoIP subscriber equipment 212 and the GCS 200. The VoIPsubscriber equipment includes but is not limited to the CPE 112 n,Communication Devices 114 n and computers 116 n described above withrespect to FIG. 1. In one embodiment of the invention, the UI has thelook and feel of a directory of names that are part of the VoIPsubscriber's list of contacts. The directory may show all or part of thetotal number of contacts (depending on a display screen size (also partof VoIP subscriber equipment 212) and configuration that is driven bythe UI, number of total contacts or user organizational preferences(i.e., alphabetical, groups, sub-groups and the like)). Interactionbetween the first server/UI 204 and the VoIP subscriber is enabled via afirst connection 214 of the first server/UI 204 to a packet-basednetwork such as the Internet 108. In one embodiment of the invention,the first connection 214 is a Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP) as iscommonly known in the art of packet-based network communications. In apreferred embodiment of the invention, the UI 204 is created andexecuted using a Ruby on Rails-based application using RESTfulcommunication on a Red Hat LINUX® platform running on IBM hardwarealthough the UI 204 is operable on other combinations of software andhardware including MICROSOFT® WINDOWS® running on compatible devices.

The first server/UI 204 is further connected to a second server 202 viaa second connection 216 and a third server 206 via a third connection218. In one embodiment of the invention, the second and thirdconnections 216 and 218 are via HTTP using the Representational statetransfer (REST) style of software architecture. REST is more fullydisclosed in “Architectural Styles and the Design of Network-basedSoftware Architectures” by Roy Thomas Fielding, 2000 herein incorporatedby reference.

The second server 202 functions as a Load Balancer for the GCP 210 asdescribed in greater detail below. Generally, the second server/LoadBalancer 202 assigns group calling tasks to specific pool “members” 220of the GCP 210 and maintains the state of calls and requests. In oneembodiment of the invention, the second server/Load Balancer 202 iscreated on a Red Hat LINUX® platform running on IBM hardware althoughsame is operable on other combinations of software and hardwareincluding MICROSOFT® WINDOWS® running on compatible devices.

The third server 206 functions as a Manager for the database 208. Thatis, information is maintained in the database 208 in order to executegroup calling functions based on VoIP subscriber requests. The thirdserver/Manager 206 acts as an abstraction layer for the database 208 inorder to relay the requested information from the database 208 to thesecond server/Load Balancer 202 and GCP 210. In a preferred embodimentof the invention, the third server/Manager 206 is created and its tasksexecuted by using a Ruby on Rails-based application using RESTfulcommunication on a on a Red Hat LINUX® platform running on IBM hardwarealthough the UI 204 is operable on other combinations of software andhardware including MICROSOFT® WINDOWS® running on compatible devices.

The GCP 210 further comprises a plurality of group call servers 220(pool members) for responding to group call setup requests by the VoIPsubscriber as identified above. Each group call server 220 processes onegroup call request. As a group call request is processed, theappropriate group call session set up process is executed via a fourthconnection 222 between the GCP 210 and a packet-based network such asthe Internet 108. In one embodiment of the invention, Session InitiationProtocol (SIP) is used as the connection protocol to execute the groupcall session set up (and subsequent tear down) steps. SIP is a signalingprotocol for initiating, managing and terminating media (e.g., voice,data and video) sessions across packet based networks that typically usethe Internet Protocol (IP) of which VoIP is an example. The details andfunctionality of SIP can be found in the Internet Engineering Task Force(IETF) Request for Comments (RFC) Paper No. 3261 entitled, “SIP: SessionInitiation Protocol” herein incorporated in its entirety by reference.As the number of group call requests fluctuates (based on the rate ofnew group call requests/session set ups and conclusion of groupcalls/session tear downs), the second server/Load Balancer 202 managesthe GCP 210 to optimize call flow. In one embodiment of the invention,this management process is performed via open source software andpreferably using ASTERISK® v1.2.14. ASTERISK® is an open source productcreated by Digium, Inc. of Huntsville, Ala. and released under the GNUGeneral Public License (GPL). In a preferred embodiment of theinvention, each of the plurality of group call servers 220 is created ona Red Hat LINUX® platform running on IBM hardware although same isoperable on other combinations of software and hardware includingMICROSOFT® WINDOWS® running on compatible devices.

FIG. 3 depicts a series of method steps 300 for performing group callingin an IP-based communication system in accordance with the subjectinvention. The method is, in one embodiment of the invention, practicedin the GCS 200 as introduced and described above to create a“bridgeless” conference call system. The group calling method 300 startsat step 302 and proceeds to step 304 where a group calling administratoridentifier is received. For example, a VoIP subscriber desires toestablish a group calling session between himself and at least two otherparties. As such, he accesses the GCS 200 (via first server/UI 204,“calling” or invoking the GCS 200) and activates a Group Calling featureavailable therethrough. As a result, information identifying the VoIPsubscriber as the group call administrator will be sent to andsubsequently received by the GCS 200. The group call administratoridentifier is selected from the group of possible identifiers consistingof VoIP subscriber user name, VoIP subscriber account number, VoIPsubscriber instant messaging identifier, VoIP subscriber telephonenumber and other authorized subscriber telephone number (i.e., atelephone number that is not necessarily provided or assigned by theVoIP provider). Other identifiers are possible and are known to thoseskilled in the art.

At step 306, one or more group calling invitee identifiers is received.For example, a VoIP subscriber (after having identified himself as thegroup calling administrator as described above) desires to establish agroup calling session between himself and at least one other party. Assuch, he continues to access the GCS 200 (via first server/UI 204) andselects one or more group calling invitees available therethrough. As aresult, information identifying the one or more selected group callinginvitees will be sent to and subsequently received by the GCS 200. Thegroup call invitee identifier is selected from the group of possibleidentifiers consisting of contact name of invitee given by VoIPsubscriber, group call invitee telephone number, VoIP subscriber instantmessaging identifier, VoIP subscriber telephone number and otherauthorized subscriber telephone number (i.e., a telephone number that isnot necessarily provided or assigned by the VoIP provider). Otheridentifiers are possible and are known to those skilled in the art. Notethat there can be up to n invitees where n is limited by the number ofgroup call participants that can be supported by the system architectureand hardware.

At step 308, a first group call connection is initiated from a centrallocation. More particularly and in one embodiment of the invention, oncethe GCS 200 has all of the necessary information to initiate a groupcall (namely an administrator identifier and two or more inviteeidentifiers), the GCS 200 attempts to make the group call in accordancewith the VoIP subscriber's request. The group call starts with the GCS200 placing a call to the administrator who has identified himself assuch earlier. For example, one of the servers from the group callingserver pool 220 begins executing a group calling session set up bycalling the administrator. If the administrator answers the call (i.e.,picks up his phone to place it in an “off-hook” condition), the GCS 200receives acknowledgement that the group call administrator has acceptedthe group call session request. If the administrator does not answer thecall, the GCS 200 tears down the group call session to free up the groupcall server 220 and allow it to service another group call request.

At step 310, at least one additional group call connection is initiatedfrom a central location. More particularly and in one embodiment of theinvention, once the group call administrator has accepted the group callsession request from the GCS 200, the GCS 200 attempts to finalize thegroup call session set up in accordance with the VoIP subscriber'srequest. The GCS 200 places a call to the at least one group callinvitee that the administrator had identified earlier. For example, theserver 220 from the group calling server pool that initiated the firstgroup call connection continues the group calling session set up bycalling the at least one group call invitee. If at least one of thegroup call invitee(s) answers the call (i.e., picks up his phone toplace it in an “off-hook” condition), the GCS 200 receivesacknowledgement that the group call invitee has accepted the group callsession request and connects such invitee(s) to the administrator andother accepted invitees. That is, even if only two parties comprise thegroup call, (appearing to be a “regular phone call” between twoparties), the GCS 200 maintains the call with all attendant features andfunctionality of a group call as discussed above.

At step 312, one or more group calling secondary functions areoptionally executed. Specifically, once the group call is initiated,there may be circumstances where call control features have to beinvoked by the group call administrator during the group call in orderto achieve the desired results. Such call control features areexecutable in real time (i.e., during the group call) via the firstserver/UI 204 for real time modification of the user experience. In oneembodiment of the invention, the group call administrator accesses thefirst server/UI 204 and requests modification, initiation or terminationof a group call feature therethrough while maintaining basic group calldynamics. The request can be made via manipulation of a graphical icon,performing a drag and drop operation of old/new group call attendeesfrom/to the group call or other operations known to those skilled in theart. Non-limiting examples of group calling features that can be managedin real time are selected from the group consisting of mute/unmute callparticipants, invoking re-invite requests to one or more parties andremoving one or more parties from an existing group call although otherfeatures are additionally contemplated. The benefits of suchcapabilities include being able to view the status of these optionalfeatures (and the group call in general) in real time via the UI 204.The method ends at step 314.

FIG. 4 depicts a schematic diagram of a controller 400 that may be usedto practice the present invention. The controller 400 may be used tofacilitate establishment of the UI created by server 204 and process thegroup call requests within the GCS 200 as described above. Thecontroller 400 may be one of any form of a general purpose computerprocessor used in accessing an IP-based network such as a corporateintranet, the Internet or the like. The controller 400 comprises acentral processing unit (CPU) 402, a memory 404, and support circuits406 for the CPU 402. The controller 400 also includes provisions 408/410for connecting the controller 400 to the first server/User Interface 204and system components such as but not limited to the Load Balancer 202and the Group Calling Pool 210 and one or more input/output devices (notshown) for accessing the controller 400 and/or performing ancillary oradministrative functions related thereto. Note that the provisions408/410 are shown as separate bus structures in FIG. 4; however, theymay alternately be a single bus structure without degrading or otherwisechanging the intended operability of the controller 400 or invention ingeneral. Additionally, the controller 400 and its operating componentsand programming as described in detail below are shown as a singleentity; however, the controller may also be one or more controllers andprogramming modules interspersed around the GCS 200 each carrying out aspecific or dedicated portion of the diagnostic analysis as describedearlier. By way of non-limiting example, a portion of the controller 400or software operations may occur at the Load Balancer 202 and another aportion of the controller 400 or software operations may occur at theGroup Calling Pool 210. Other configurations of the controller andcontroller programming are known and understood by those skilled in theart.

The memory 404 is coupled to the CPU 402. The memory 404, orcomputer-readable medium, may be one or more of readily available memorysuch as random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), floppy disk,hard disk, flash memory or any other form of digital storage, local orremote. The support circuits 406 are coupled to the CPU 402 forsupporting the processor in a conventional manner. These circuitsinclude cache, power supplies, clock circuits, input/output circuitryand subsystems, and the like. A software routine 412, when executed bythe CPU 402, causes the controller 400 to perform processes of thepresent invention and is generally stored in the memory 404. Thesoftware routine 412 may also be stored and/or executed by a second CPU(not shown) that is remotely located from the hardware being controlledby the CPU 402.

The software routine 412 is executed when the disclosed method ofprocessing group call requests is desired. The software routine 412,when executed by the CPU 402, transforms the general purpose computerinto a specific purpose computer (controller) 400 that controls thevarious servers and GCS 200 in general or other similar actions.Although the process of the present invention is discussed as beingimplemented as a software routine, some of the method steps that aredisclosed therein may be performed in hardware as well as by thesoftware controller. As such, the invention may be implemented insoftware as executed upon a computer system, in hardware as anapplication specific integrated circuit or other type of hardwareimplementation, or a combination of software and hardware. The softwareroutine 412 of the present invention is capable of being executed oncomputer operating systems including but not limited to MicrosoftWindows 98, Microsoft Windows XP, Apple OS X and LINUX. Similarly, thesoftware routine 412 of the present invention is capable of beingperformed using CPU architectures including but not limited to ApplePower PC, Intel x86, Sun service provider agentRC and Intel ARM.

While foregoing is directed to embodiments of the present invention,other and further embodiments of the invention may be devised withoutdeparting from the basic scope thereof, and the scope thereof.

1. Method for making a VoIP-based group call comprising: receiving a group call administrator identifier; receiving one or more group call invitee identifiers; initiating a first group call connection from a central location and initiating at least one or more second group call connections from the central location to join a group call administrator and at the least one group call invitee.
 2. The method of claim 1 wherein the group call administrator identifier is a telephone number.
 3. The method of claim 2 wherein the one or more group call invitee identifiers are telephone numbers.
 4. The method of claim 1 wherein the group call administrator identifier and one or more group call invitee identifiers are received from the group call administrator.
 5. The method of claim 1 wherein the first group call connection initiation is to the group administrator.
 6. The method of claim 1 wherein the second or more group call connection initiations are to the at least one group call invitee.
 7. The method of claim 1 wherein the central location for the first group call connection initiation is VoIP service provider equipment.
 8. The method of claim 1 wherein the central location for the second or more group call connection initiations is VoIP service provider equipment.
 9. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of receiving a group call administrator identifier occurs via a first internet connection between a group call administrator and a VoIP service provider.
 10. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of receiving one or more group call invitee identifiers occurs via a first internet connection between a group call administrator and a VoIP service provider.
 11. System for making a VoIP-based group call comprising: a user interface adapted for use by a group call administrator via the Internet; a database manager connected to the user interface; a database connected to the database manager; a group call load balancer connected to the user interface; a group calling pool adapted for SIP-based group call setup.
 12. The system of claim 11 wherein the user interface further comprises a first field for receiving a group call administrator identifier and at least one second field for receiving one or more group call invitee identifiers.
 13. The system of claim 12 wherein the group call administrator identifier is a telephone number.
 14. The system of claim 12 wherein the one or more group call invitee identifiers are telephone numbers.
 15. The system of claim 12 wherein the group calling pool further comprises a plurality of servers.
 16. The system of claim 15 wherein each server responds to one group call request made by the group call administrator.
 17. The system of claim 16 wherein each server responds to a group call request by initiating a first group call connection and initiating at least one or more second group call connections to join a group call administrator and at least one group call invitee.
 18. A computer readable medium storing a software program that, when executed by a computer and being initiated in response to a communication request placed via an interface of a VoIP service subscriber, causes the computer to perform an operation of VoIP-based group call comprising: receiving a group call administrator identifier; receiving one or more group call invitee identifiers; initiating a first group call connection from a central location and initiating at least one or more second group call connections from the central location to join a group call administrator and at the least one group call invitee.
 19. The method of claim 18 wherein the first group call connection initiation is to the group administrator.
 20. The method of claim 18 wherein the second or more group call connection initiations are to the at least one group call invitee. 